Trash collection and disposal on an aircraft can become quite time consuming and burdensome for those working on the aircraft. This is especially true on relatively short flights when a large fraction of the flight attendants' time is spent collecting trash such as used napkins, dirty glasses, and empty peanut containers.
Vacuum induced trash collection systems have been devised for automobiles. U.S. Pat. No. 3,230,567, to Nickless, discloses a system in which a vacuum is used to draw litter into a common receptacle for removal later. U.S. Pat. No. 3,648,837, to Ogle, discloses a trash collection system having two separate litter paths, one for dry, bulky litter and the other for lit material, such as cigarettes. The lit material is drawn through a tube and is deposited into a waterfilled chamber.
Both of these systems suffer from significant drawbacks when contemplated for use aboard aircraft. A dual line system such as disclosed in Ogle impermissibly increases the bulk and weight of the system for aircraft uses. However, the system disclosed in the Nickless patent is also unsuitable for many applications since it lacks the ability to extinguish lit material, such as cigarettes.